CCTV Cameras So Powerful, They Can See What You’re Texting

Surveillance cameras are now so powerful that they were able to zoom in on individual spectators at the Rugby World Cup and read their text messages.

Details of police monitoring used for the first time during the tournament were discussed at a privacy forum in Wellington yesterday, at which it was revealed that the average person is digitally recorded about a dozen times a day – and even more if they use email and social media frequently.

Superintendent Grant O’Fee told the forum how one incident at the Rugby World Cup “tweaked in my head” a concern about possible privacy breaches.